I think it’s fair to say that most freelancers are always looking for more work. It’s probably part of the piecework lifestyle and essential to keep your creative brain learning and growing! Whether you want tips to increase your freelancing income or are just looking for something a little different, try these options to see what works for you!

Top ways to find more work as a freelancer

I feel confident saying that I’ve tried just about every avenue when searching for more work as a freelance writer. The ways I’ve listed below are the ones that I find have the strongest chances of success. They also take less effort to find, which is important when the work itself may not be a sure thing in the beginning.

• Check with previous clients: If you have active clients that you enjoy working with, consider checking with them to see if they know of anyone else who is looking for a job to be done. Whether it’s a one-off or they become a new regular client, it can be a great choice to expand your writing portfolio and enjoy some extra income. In the world of social media, this can be an easy thing for clients to do for you, too, if you ask.

• Start a referral system: If you want to get the best benefit out of your clients, create and put to work a formal referral system. Clients that send new clients and work your way can enjoy a discount (or some other kind of perk), and you’ll get a somewhat steady stream of new tasks to add to your freelancing queue.

• Offer adjacent services (aka cross-training): This is probably the hardest choice, and it can take some time to get working for you. I’ve talked about this a bit in my blog post about unique side hustles for freelance writers, so check that out if you need some inspiration. Long-term, this has worked best for me, but it also isn’t going to blossom into anything overnight. Whether or not this works for you is going to depend mostly on how you go about making it as simple and as profitable as possible.

Freelancing is all about knowing how to sell your services

Perhaps those tips were different than you were expecting. After all, it might make the most sense, at first, to sign up for another freelancing platform or go job hunting for open freelance job listings. However, that puts you in the same category as every other freelancer. If you want to increase your odds of success, build off the business you already have.

Not only can this lead to leads for extra business, but it also increases the chance that you’ll get good jobs and new clients rather than poor-paying jobs or frustrating (or worse) clients.

Fellow freelancers, what works for you in finding more freelancing jobs? Do you disagree with any of my tips? Does a “sure thing” exist for your freelancing queue? If so, consider sharing below!